Daily News

For McDonald’s corporate brass, 2015 was a tale of two halves: The first half was challenging, while the second half was resurgent. That second-half momentum from last year has carried over to 2016 as the iconic brand stepped up its customer engagement efforts, forging bigger and better brand loyalty.

Earlier this year, there was also talk of a new loyalty program being unveiled sometime in 2017.

Last week, McDonald’s registered very favorable third-quarter fiscal results, punctuated by the company’s fifth consecutive quarter of positive comparable sales across all segments.

Third-quarter comparable sales increased 1.3 percent in the U.S., strongly supported by McDonald’s All Day Breakfast, everyday value under the McPick 2 platform, and the introduction of Chicken McNuggets with no artificial preservatives.

To continue to give customers more of their favorite breakfast items any time of the day, McDonald’s will be shifting to one national All Day Breakfast menu allowing guests to enjoy even more breakfast choices nationwide at participating restaurants. Before the expanded All Day Breakfast menu launched, All Day Breakfast consisted of McMuffin sandwiches or Biscuit sandwiches after normal breakfast hours.

During the third-quarter financial results announcement, McDonald’s CEO Steve Easterbrook said the company doesn’t manage the company quarter-by-quarter.

“In fact, our commitment to investing in the business is stronger now than ever,” he said. “We’ve taken action in the areas that matter most to customers. In particular, we’re placing significant emphasis on food quality, the customer experience, and value to give people more reasons to visit McDonald’s. We believe the long-term investments we are making in these areas provide the foundation on which we’ll build as we work to be recognized as a modern progressive burger company by customers.”

Is McDonald’s headed in a positive customer-centric trajectory that ensures future growth?

“McDonald’s recent move to All Day Breakfast and going to more natural ingredients shows that it’s adapting its menus to customer demand,” Nix explained to Loyalty360. “Generating true loyalty goes beyond simple points and rewards. True loyalty starts with the quality of the product and the entire customer experience surrounding that product.”